My Eighteenth Birthday Hell
by bram4eva
Summary: Brittany Pierce is a princess, popular, beloved, heir to the throne. On her 18th birthday, her father throws a gala in her honor. Everything is going well until the palace is attacked and Brittany is forced to flee, with a stranger. During their time together, Brittany begins to have feelings for the young soldier and he helps her find her way after the deaths of her parents.
1. Celebrations

The soft rustle of purple silk followed behind as Brittany Pierce made her way down the grand staircase of her home. It was the day of her 18th birthday and her Father had promised her a beautiful gala in her honour. Everywhere she looked, servants were running around, putting the finishing touches to the foyer or rushing past to help in the kitchen. She watched in amusement as a short girl struggled to hang a huge banner over the staircase, leaning over the banisters as much as she could. On the other side of the room, an Asian girl was dragging a long red carpet towards the front doors. When she got there, she began to roll it out, towards the steps where Brittany was standing.

"Oh, I am so sorry your Highness, I did not see you." A humble voice said when Brittany felt a rough nudge from behind her. She turned to see an older man with short curly hair balancing several trays coming down the steps. She quickly stepped out of the way, dragging her long skirts behind her.

"Not at all. It was my fault, I should not have been standing there in the first place." Brittany said, gesturing for him to continue with his task. The servants of the Pierce household were, although always eager to please the young girl, they also loved her. She was not as domineering a her mother and father and she went out of her way to make sure each and every one of them was happy. Because of this, the servants were very happy to help throw the best gala possible for the girl.

"There you are, Brittany. Your mother and I have been looking for you. What are you doing out here at this present moment? Surely the hustle of these peasants bores you, my dear." Her father's booming voice echoed through the room and the once happy hum of chatter died down to silence.

"Oh no, father. I find it intriguing to watch the servants at work." Brittany said, lifting up her skirts and gracefully moving up the stairs to meet her father. He offered her his elbow and she looped her arm through, allowing him to lead her away.

"I am eager to give you my gift, my darling. Come, let me show you." He said, leading her to her bedroom. Opening the door, he revealed a rack full of the most exquisite ball gowns you could ever imagine. There were dozens in every colour of the rainbow and each one was different to the next.

"I would be enlightened to see you wear one of these at the gala this evening. I have had each of them made especially for you by the finest tailors and dressmakers in the kingdom." Brittany smiled and rushed forward, running her hands over the beautiful material. Being a princess, she already had thousands of dresses but it was always an excitement to gain another dress, especially one as beautiful as these.

"Are they all for me, father?" Brittany asked, turning back to him.

"Yes, my dear. Anything for you." He smiled at her and turned to leave the room so her maids could help her choose the perfect dress for the evening.

It was nearly an hour before Brittany found herself leaning against the wall, holding her breath while one of her maids pulled the strings on her corset tight. Most of the time, Brittany refused to wear a corset but on special occasions like this, her father told her she must. And so, Brittany reluctantly allowed the brown haired girl to tighten the strings, telling her not to make it too tight as she wanted to be able to dance. When the corset was tight enough, it was time for the petticoats and cage. Five thick petticoats were put on and a large cage. Then the pretty, emerald green dress was gently slipped over her head, the long row of buttons being done up as well. Following that, Brittany's long blonde hair was braided and twisted into a fancy style, a few strands of curled hair hanging by her face, and a pair of green heels slipped onto her feet. The final touch was her silver tiara placed on her head and a pair of white gloves slipped onto her hands. By this time, the clock in the hallway was chiming for seven o'clock. Brittany took a final look at herself in the mirror and made her way towards the foyer.

She was beginning to get nervous as she knew that tonight, she was supposed to find a suitor to whom she would be married. Every young gentleman in the kingdom would be here tonight, and they would all be wanting to ask her to become their wife. Her father met her in the hallway behind the grand staircase and told her to wait behind the door. When she was told, she would come out, through the doors and stand at the centre of the small platform in the middle of the two staircases.

"Ladies and Gentlemen. I would like to thank you all for being here tonight to help celebrate my daughter's 18th birthday. And so, without further ado, I present to you, my daughter, Princess Brittany Susan Pierce!" She heard her father speak to the crowd and watched as the doors in front of her were pulled open. She smiled and stepped out to where her father was standing, waving to the guests looking up at her. Doing a quick scan of the crowd, she noticed that most of the eligible men didn't look all that bad. Her father took her hand, raising it up as she dropped into a curtsey. The crowd cheered as she allowed her father to lead her down the stairs, a huge smile plastered on her face. Her mother met them at the base of the stairs, engulfing her in a hug and kissing her cheek. The crowd parted to let them through as Brittany walked towards the ballroom, her parents following behind her.

When they got to the ballroom, the orchestra began to play a fast waltz and her father took hold of her and led her to the centre of the dance floor where they start a fast dance, their feet moving at an almost impossible speed. Brittany's father was a dancer and Brittany had been lucky enough to inherit the skill and together they twirled around the floor while the guests watched in awe. The song ended and Brittany politely curtsied to her father before wandering off to mingle with the guests.

"Excuse me, Your Highness. May I have this dance?" She turned to find a tall man with a child-like face offering her his hand. She smiled ad took it, following him to the dance floor. It turned out that the man was a terrible dancer. He constantly stood on her feet, even though they were only doing a simple box step. She smiled at him whenever he looked at her but when he looked away, she looked around, trying to get the attention of another man to save her.

"Your Highness? If I may?" A tap on her shoulder made her stop dancing and turn around. A blonde man stood behind her, offering his hand, a smile playing on the corners of his mouth. She turned to the man she had been dancing with and smiled apologetically.

"No, I must insist that you finish this dance with me, Your Highness." He said, not letting go of her.

"Sir, may I remind you that this is my house and if you do not let me go, I will have no choice but to call the guards to have you escorted from the building." She told him curtly, turning away again but he roughly pulled her closer.

"Finish the dance with me." He said in a vicious tone. Brittany became scared and nervously started up the box step again, trying to catch the shocked eye of the blonde man.

"Excuse me, sir. But I do believe the Princess said she no longer wanted to dance with you." He said, laying a gentle hand on the taller man's shoulder.

"Excuse me, sir. But I do believe the Princess was dancing with me when you rudely interrupted us." he retorted, mimicking him and trying to spin Brittany away from him.

"Is something the matter, gentlemen?" Brittany's father appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. Both men shook their heads and the taller man let go of Brittany. She ran to her father, cowering into his side.

"Father, he wouldn't let me dance with this gentleman." Brittany said, gesturing first to the tall man and then to the blonde.

"May I remind you, sirs, that this is my daughter's gala and she may dance with whomever she pleases." He said, frowning.

"Yes Your Highness. I apologise." The tall man bowed and disappeared into the crowd. Brittany gratefully kissed her father's cheek and went to dance with the blonde man, believing that all was well once again.


	2. Attack

"So are you going to tell me your name, sir?" Brittany asked as they twirled around the dance floor. He grinned.

"Sam Evans, at your service, Your Highness." He said.

"Lovely name. So, what are you? A prince? Soldier?" She asked, wanting to get to know the young man.

"I'm a soldier from the next kingdom over. I heard about the gala being thrown for you and I wanted to meet you. So here I am." He chuckled. Suddenly, a loud scream echoed through the room and every one stopped, frozen on the spot.

"The resistance are coming!" The head guard called out from the entry and that was all it took for people to start panicking. The orchestra stopped playing, wine glasses shattered onto the floor. Women cowered into their partner's sides. Men grouped together to shield the women.

"Brittany!" She heard her father calling out for her and looked around, trying to find him.

"Father! Where are you?" She cried, struggling to get out of Sam's protective grip.

"Your Highness, I must insist that you come with me." Sam tugged on her arm but she shrugged him off.

"No! I must find my father!" She cried, finally becoming free and disappearing into the crowd, desperately searching for her parents.

"Brittany! You must get away from here. Go with Sam. Only come back when it is safe, promise me you will stay safe." Her father said when she found him and threw herself at him.

"No, father! I won't leave you." She said, tears running down her face.

"You must, darling. They are here for you. Get away while you can." Her mother pressed, pushing her towards Sam.

"Your highness, come with me. I found a way out." Sam urged, dragging her away.

"I love you! I promise, I'll be safe!" Brittany called out, reaching her hand towards her father before he was cut from her view and she was lost in the crowd, her only tether was Sam's hand in her own, dragging her towards an escape. As they ran, the big glass windows above the orchestra shattered, glass shards raining down on the crowd. Flaming arrows were shot through the open windows, the huge curtains catching on fire. Brittany gasped as the dancing flames engulfed the large curtains. Brittany screamed and felt a hard tug on her arm. She managed to finally break through the crowd and followed Sam down a deserted hallway.

"In here." Sam said, pointing to a small trapdoor in the floor. Brittany quickly scurried down, waiting for Sam at the bottom while he shut the door and came to stand beside her.

"I'm scared, Sam." She whispered, clinging to him as he tried to light a torch.

"I know. But I won't let anything happen to you. I promise." He got the torch working and they made their way down the tunnel for what felt like hours, the tunnel twisting and turning, branching off in various places. Brittany wondered how Sam knew which way to go. Finally, they saw light at the end of the tunnel and hurried towards it. They emerged into a small clearing in the woods behind the castle. Piercing screams rang through the night and flashes of flaming arrows could be seen through the trees as th moonlight filtered down to the pair.

"Sam…" Brittany said but he covered her mouth with his rough hand.

"Shhh. Don't talk until I say it's safe." He instructed, his voice barley able to be heard above the noise. She nodded and followed him as he led the way through the bushes. They didn't get far before Brittany stopped and began to fiddle with her skirts.

"What are you doing?" Sam hissed, going back to her.

"The cage under my skirt is getting in the way. I have to take it off." She whispered back, handing him the bottom of her dress. She bent down and slowly unclipped the cage, stepping out of it as soon as she could. Then she pulled off the five petticoats and ripped away the bottom of her dress so that she could move easier. She was about to just throw it all to the side but Sam stopped her.

"Wait. I know how to throw anyone off our trail." He said, going off the path a little and following a new trail. They followed that for a short distance until they came to a large lake. Sam haphazardly dumped the cage on the shore and then threw the material into the water where it floated for a while and began to sink a little. Then they made their way back to the main path and continued their journey. Brittany held onto Sam's hand as they cautiously made their way through the woods, cutting off from their trail every now and then to confuse anyone following them.

Eventually, they made it to a small cabin on what seemed to be the other side of the woods around dawn. Sam unlocked the door and gestured for her to go in before him. She smiled and slipped past, glad to have found somewhere to rest. Her shoes had been taken off hours earlier and were hanging on her fingers.

"I guess we'll rest here and keep going in the morning, yes?" she asked, sitting down on a stool to rub her sore feet. Sam shook his head.

"No. We're in my home kingdom now. They wouldn't think of looking for you in another kingdom." He said, sitting down on a stool nearby.

"How did you know this place was here?" she asked, putting one foot down and picking up the other.

"It's my house. I told you, I'm a soldier. Not directly in the king's army but I help to protect the borders of the kingdom." he explained and she nodded, yawning.

"Oh. I, er, don't suppose you have anything to eat? I didn't really eat much at the gala and we've been walking all night." she asked and he jumped up, smacking his head.

"Sorry. I wasn't thinking. I'm used to going for hours without eating. I don't really have a lot of food but I can get some bread and jam." he offered and she smiled.

"That's fine. I know it's not going to be palace food." she said, laughing. Sam scurried about the kitchen for a minute or two before returning with a plate of bread and a small pot of jam. Brittany hungrily snatched up a slice of the bread and spread some jam on it, almost shoving it whole into her mouth. Sam let her eat, knowing she was hungry and just sat silently, watching her.

"I guess you're tired. You can get some sleep on the bed in there if you want. I've got a few things I have to do." he told her, gesturing to a door behind her.

"Thank-you Sam. I really appreciate you doing this." she said, getting up. She kissed his cheek and disappeared through the door. The bed wasn't very big but it would do for some well needed sleep so she lay down an was asleep almost instantly.


End file.
